Vengeance
by Laplandgurl
Summary: A man is murdered and Horatio tries to find the killer - and the suspect is someone totally out in left field - very dark, mentions of torture. Slight crossover with CSI:NY
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own CSI:Miami or CSI:NY in any shape or form – I will put them back after borrowing them for a while.**

**a/n: This will be a one shot – I don't usually write these types of stories and warning: mentions of torture – if you don't like reading about torture – don't read.**

**VENGEANCE**

A silver Hummer braked to a stop outside a small mansion on Dodge Island, and a tall, red haired man stepped out of the Hummer.

"Detective Berkeley, what do we have here?"

"Lt. Caine, are you by yourself?"

"Delko and Miss Boa Vista are on the way. What is the situation here?" asked Lt. Horatio Caine, standing sideways with his hands on his hips.

"It looks like a home invasion gone bad, the owner may have surprised them. I've already called the M.E.'s office."

"Who is the victim?"

"He has been tentatively identified as Jeffrey Douglas."

"Excuse me," Horatio removing his sunglasses as he stepped inside the luxurious house. "Who found Mr. Douglas?"

"Uh, the housekeeper, Mrs. Lopez, Sgt. Tripp has her in the kitchen."

"Where is the body?"

"He's in the master bedroom," Jake Berkeley gestured towards the back of the house.

"Sorry for being late, H. We got delayed at the bridge," Eric Delko, a handsome Cuban said as he and Natalia walked into the house.

"The scene is in the master bedroom, but the house needs to be checked for any signs of forced entry, thank you," Horatio nodded at his CSIs.

In the bedroom Eric and Natalia started processing the scene, as Horatio looked at the overall picture, noting that the victim was tied to the bed, face down and appeared to have been stabbed several times.

"Any sign of the murder weapon Eric?" Horatio asked.

"I haven't found it yet."

"This gentleman didn't go easy," Alexx commented as she walked into the bedroom.

"Not a very good start to your day Alexx."

"Oh you've got that right, Horatio," Alexx smiled at her friend, before getting down to the business of examining the body.

"Horatio, I found a letter on the dresser," said Natalia, snapping pictures before sliding the paper into a clear evidence bag, and passing it to Horatio to read.

"Miami-Dade Police Department. I confess to killing Lisa Marie Valdez on October 21, 2002, signed Jeffrey Douglas," Horatio read out loud.

"I remember that case, H." said Eric. "We liked Mr. Douglas for Lisa's murder, but we couldn't find any concrete evidence."

"Yes, and someone forced our victim to write that confession."

"What is that?" Natalia pointed to a metal tube approx. 2 ½ feet in length, 2 inches in diameter. Two metal prongs were on one end and the other end had a rubber grip.

"That is an electric shock prod," replied Horatio. "Alexx, are the stab wounds the cause of death?"

"Yes, but I will know more at post."

"TOD?"

"He died around midnight."

"That's a hard way to go, I wonder if any of his neighbours's heard him screaming?" Eric mused.

"I've got uniforms talking to his neighbours," replied Jake Berkeley.

_24 Hours Previous:_

Lt. Horatio Caine stepped out of the elevator car in front of the MDPD CSI's reception desk.

"Lt. Caine, you have a visitor," Paula said, catching the tall, red haired detective's attention.

"Did this person give you a name?" Horatio tilted his head.

"She gave the name Izelda Valdez and she wants to find out the status of a murder investigation."

"I'll talk to her, where is she?"

Paula indicated the small waiting area down the hall. Walking down the hallway Horatio saw a woman with short grey hair sitting on the padded bench.

"Miss Valdez, I'm Lt. Horatio Caine. I was told that you wished to speak to me." The woman turned her head when Horatio spoke, and he noticed that she was younger then he had previously estimated, and that she was wearing extremely dark, wrap around sunglasses.

"Lt. Caine," the woman spoke in a low, husky voice.

"Yes, how may I help you?"

"I wanted to find out the status of my sister's case."

"Let's go to my office where we can talk freely."

"Thank you," Izelda said, as she reached for a cane which had been lying on the bench on her opposite side and struggled to stand up from the low bench. "Damn, I knew that it would be too low for me," as she sank back down on the bench. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to need your help to stand up."

"Not a problem," Horatio gently grasped her elbows, easily lifted the woman to her feet. "Okay now Miss Valdez?"

"Yes thank you."

"My office is just down the hall, the last door on the left."

In his office, Horatio indicated to Izelda that she was to take his office chair which was higher than the other chairs in his office. Horatio sat on one of the visitor's chairs facing his visitor.

"Thank you, it is hard to get up from low chairs with bad hips."

"You wanted to discuss your sister's case?"

"Yes, Lisa Marie Valdez, she was killed on October 21, 2002."

"What did you want to know about the case?"

"Do you have any suspects? Will there be an arrest in the future?"

"We do have a person of interest, but I'm sorry to say that we don't have enough evidence to file charges."

"My parents died recently, and as I was going thru their stuff, I found some letters that Lisa had written to me when I was overseas."

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents. What about Lisa's letters?"

"I had never read them because I was a P.O.W. in Iraq, then in rehab for a number of years," explained Izelda. "Lisa talked about meeting a man here in Miami."

"Did she mention his name?"

"Yes, a Jeffrey Douglas, in her letters, she said that she had accepted his proposal of marriage."

"Mm-hmm," Horatio murmured.

"Lisa mentioned that the only problem between them was the fact that she wanted children and that he didn't. She thought that she would be able to change his mind, the last letter that she wrote was dated the day that she died. And she wrote that she had found out that she was pregnant, and she said that she was going to keep the baby against his wishes."

"Did he know about Lisa's pregnancy?"

"Yes, she had told him the day before and he demanded that she was to get an abortion."

"Do you have the letter with you?"

"Yes, I do," Izelda retrieved a much folded letter from her purse, passing it to Horatio, who quickly read the pages silently.

"This does confirm our suspicions, but it is not definite proof, I'm sorry to say."

"So that's it?"

"Yes unless we find some more evidence," agreed Horatio.

"Okay, well thanks for your time," Izelda said, slowly standing up.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't give you some good news," Horatio stood up as well. "How can I contact you if we need to reach you?"

"I am staying at the Hilton."

"You don't live in here in Miami?"

"No, I'm on vacation, Lisa always wanted me to visit, but I wasn't able to get leave. Then I got into difficulties in Iraq."

At the front door, Horatio asked. "Do you need to call for a taxi?"

"No, I have a car and driver waiting," Izelda shielded her eyes with her hand despite the dark sunglasses that she was wearing.

"Take care Izelda," Horatio watched as Izelda carefully walked down the steps, heading for a grey van.

_Present Day:_

"Alexx, what do you have for me?" Horatio asked, walking into the autopsy room.

Alexx frowned and shook her head. "I know that I said it already, but I repeat this poor man did not die easily."

"What do you mean Alexx?"

"Mr. Douglas here couldn't call out for help. His larynx was crushed, most likely from a punch to the throat. And also he was tortured, probably from that electric prod." Alexx lifting the sheet, indicating the region of torture. "I found burn marks south of the border and he was also repeatly sodomized by a foreign object before he was stabbed to death."

"Which was the fatal stab wound?"

"This one at the base of the skull, it severed the vertebrate and the spinal cord – this was the killing strike. The other stab wounds caused extensive bleeding, but missed the vital areas."

"Lucky strikes or a knowledge of anatomy," Horatio nodded.

"Perhaps," Alexx agreed. "And here you can see where he was punctured with something small, a needle perhaps. I've send his blood up to toxins for analysis."

"Did you find any trace evidence of his attacker?"

"No, just fibers from some type of material, I've already send them to the trace lab."

"Good, thank you Alexx."

Upstairs in the lab, Eric met Horatio in the hallway. "H, I ran the trace on the fibers that Alexx found on the body."

"Yes?"

"They match the fibers that I found at the scene and they trace back to heavy black cotton, burlap material. Which is most commonly used for burkas."

"Which are worn primarily by Muslim females," Horatio mused. "And where is Natalia?"

"She's in the DNA lab checking that prod for DNA."

"Thank you," Horatio walked down the hall towards DNA. "Miss Boa Vista, did you have any success with the electric prod?"

"I did," Natalia looking up at Horatio smiling. "But I only found DNA from the victim. The attacker must have worn gloves."

"No fingerprints anywhere?"

"Nothing, it was wiped clean."

"Did you check the batteries? Sometimes they forget to wear gloves when inserting batteries."

"I did, and nothing. I even checked where these things are sold. It seems that anyone can walk into a veterinary supply store and buy them or order them on-line."

"Okay, thank you."

"So what now?"

"We check Mr. Douglas's background for family and friends for possible motives."

"I'll start checking the victim's family and friends, maybe that will lead to possible enemies."

"And I am going to talk with Lisa Marie's family."

Horatio got out of the big silver Hummer parked in the driveway of the Hilton Hotel, inside the lobby, Horatio stopped at the front desk, where a tall, African American man asked. "Good afternoon sir, how may I help you?"

"I am Lt. Caine of the MDPD Crime Lab, I need Miss Izelda Valdez's room number."

"Let's see," the clerk typed a few keys on his keyboard and read the computer monitor. "I'm sorry, Ms. Valdez checked out this morning."

"What was her check out time?"

"8:00 am."

"Did she leave any forwarding address?"

"No sir, no address or phone number."

"How did she pay her hotel bill?"

"Cash, she paid cash for everything."

"Did she take a taxi when she left the hotel?"

"She arranged to be picked up the airport shuttle bus to Miami International."

"Has the room been cleaned by housekeeping yet?"

"Yes it has."  
"Could I get a copy of her room service bills?"

The clerk scanned the hotel bill and replied. "Ms. Valdez did not order from room service during her stay. She ate her meals in the hotel's coffee shop."

"Hmm, I see, thank you."

Izelda's trail went cold at Miami International, after checking passenger manifests – Izelda's name did not appear on any flights, and Horatio's team followed all possible leads in Jeffrey Douglas's murder which all led to dead ends. Finally Horatio was forced to declare the case cold and move on to more urgent cases, much to his disgust.

TBC…..


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own CSI:Miami or CSI:NY in any shape or form – I will put them back after borrowing them for a while.**

**a/n: This will be a one shot – I don't usually write these types of stories and warning: mentions of torture – if you don't like reading about torture – don't read.**

**Chapter Two**

_One Year Later – NYC Bellevue Hospice:_

"Good morning Zelda," said Detective Mac Taylor, as he entered a private room in Bellevue Hospice.

"Hi Mac," whispered Izelda Valdez, a frail woman with short, grey hair and dark sunglasses, despite the shadowed room.

Mac's keen gaze took in his friend's frail appearance and the oxygen mask. "How are you feeling today?"

"The same as always. What's the weather like outside?"

"It is quite mild today, but the colored leaves are almost all gone."

"You look tired, are you still suffering from jet lag?"

"No, I'm still getting those phone calls," Mac ruefully confessed.

"You still haven't found out who it is?" Zelda said, before coughing, deep hacking coughs.

Mac reached for a glass of water and held it so Zelda could sip some water thru the straw, easing her dry throat. "Okay now?"

Zelda nodded, relaxing against her pillows.

"You're talking too much," Mac chided. Zelda nodded and then gestured to her dresser. "What do you need?" Mac stood up from his chair.

"Address book," whispered Zelda.

Mac rummaged thru the contents of the top drawer of the dresser and held up a green book. "This?"

Zelda nodded and Mac placed the book in her hand, and watched as she flipped thru the pages until she found the right page. Zelda showed Mac the business card that was taped to the page.

"Lt. Horatio Caine, MDPD CSI," Mac read aloud. "Do you want me to call Lt. Caine for you?"

"Yes."

"How do you know Horatio?"

"Met him last year in Miami," whispered Zelda.

"What should I tell him when he asks why you want to talk to him?"

"Murder."

"Lisa's murder?"

"No, someone else's murder."

"Are you a witness?"

Zelda shrugged, declining to answer.

"Do you want me to explain to Horatio about your health?"

"If you want," Zelda shrugged in reply.

Back in the lab located on the 35th floor, Mac pondered over Zelda's request, before reaching for the phone and dialling a familiar number.

"Caine."

"Good morning Horatio."

"Mac Taylor, how is crime in the Big Apple?"

"Never stops," Mac chuckled.

"And why are you calling Miami? Another Henry Darius?"

"I'm called for a friend of mine, she says that she needs to talk to you."

"Do I know this friend?"

"Zelda says that she met you last year in Miami."

"I don't recall meeting a Zelda."

"Sorry, I should have said Izelda Valdez."

"Mm-hmm, I do remember Miss Valdez, a woman with short grey hair, dark sunglasses and walked with a cane."

"That's Zelda."

"If it's regards to the status of her sister's case, you can inform Miss Valdez that there still have been no arrests."

"She says that it is regarding another murder."

"Did she say whose murder?"

"No, she didn't."

"So when will Miss Valdez be arriving? I can arrange to meet with her."

"Horatio, you will need to come to Manhattan. Zelda is unable to travel."

"Is she ill?"

"She is dying from lung cancer," Mac explained quietly.

"I am sorry to hear that. Do the doctors know how much time she has?"

"It could be anytime now."

"Hmm, I will look at my schedule and get back to you with my travel arrangements."

The next day Mac picked Horatio up at La Guardia airport and drove him to Bellevue Hospice where Zelda was staying. Horatio and Mac walked into Zelda's room after knocking quietly at the door.

"Good afternoon Zelda, you remember Lt. Horatio Caine from Miami?"

"Hi Mac," Zelda whispered. "Thank you for coming Lt. Caine."

"Mac informed me that you wanted to speak to me," Horatio was shocked to see how frail Zelda was.

"Yes I did, and I need to do it before it is too late, Lt. Caine."

"Please call me Horatio, Miss Valdez."

"Only if you call me Zelda." Zelda whispered before sipping on some water. "I need to talk to you about a murder."

"Jeffrey Douglas's murder," replied Horatio.

"Yes, I need to confess to his murder."

"You mean to want to confess to hiring someone to kill Mr. Douglas?"

"No, I mean that I killed Lisa's fiancé."

Horatio's eyebrows rose in surprise, while Mac's face registered shock.

"Zelda, that's not true, is it?" Mac asked, while looking at his old friend.

"Yes," Zelda nodded as she looked sadly at her friend. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, old friend."

"I'm more shocked then anything in light of your past experiences," Mac admitted.

Zelda sniffled as she looked at Mac's face. "Shh, don't cry," Mac hugged Zelda. "You don't want to trigger a coughing spell." Zelda wiped her eyes and blew her nose and faced Horatio.

"Do you want to explain everything? Horatio asked.

"Yes."

"Zelda, do you want me to stay or would you prefer me to leave?"

"You can stay if you want."

"Do you mind if I tape this session?" Horatio pulled a small tape recorder out of his travel bag.

"No need, I taped my confession shortly after I was diagnosed with lung cancer. Mac, will you please get that small red suitcase out of my closet and bring it to me?"

Mac retrieved the suitcase as requested and placed it on Zelda's bed, Zelda unzipped and gave Horatio a cassette tape. "Can you play this on your machine?"

"Yes I can. Do you want me to play it now?"

"Please."

Horatio inserted the cassette into his small tape machine, pressing play. After a moment, Zelda's whispery voice came from the speaker.

"I, Izelda Valdez do admit to planning and executing Jeffrey Douglas's murder – the man who murdered my sister Lisa Marie and her unborn child, who would be six years old. I travelled to Miami and after talking with Lt. Horatio Caine, who advised that Lisa's case was still unsolved and that there was not enough evidence for an arrest. I hired a private investigator to track Jeffrey Douglas's whereabouts. I then went to his house, dressed in a Burka where I talked my way inside by saying that I needed to use the phone. Once inside, I shocked him with the electric prod, then administered Sodium Pentothal (truth serum) and once it took effect I got him to confess that he killed Lisa and the baby, by drugging her, staging the car accident and finally setting her and the car on fire and I forced him to write the confession letter. I then tied him to bed where I crushed his larynx, then tortured him with the prod, stabbing him before finally killing him," and the whispering voice stopped as the tape came to an end.

"Flip it over to the other side," Zelda requested. Horatio quickly followed Zelda's request and the confession continued.

"I then cleaned up by removing my Burka, retrieving the knife, put clean gloves on, recovered my shoes with clean plastic bags putting the bloody gloves and bags into a small garbage bag before leaving the house. I drove back to the hotel, stopping along the way to dispose of the garbage bag with the bloody gloves, bags and the other pair of gloves, bags and the plastic wrap that I had wrapped over my cane in a garbage can along a back road somewhere, burning it with the help of lighter fluid. At the hotel, I finished cleaning up, packed my bags and checked out of the hotel, taking the shuttle bus to the airport. There at the airport I changed my clothes again and put a wig on, leaving the airport in a taxi, I went to the bus station, where I took the first bus to Fort Lauderdale. From there I took the train back to New York," and the tape clicked off.

Zelda looked at Mac and Horatio, who were looking back at her.

"Did you dispose of the burka and the knife as well?" Horatio asked quietly.

"No, those items are here," Zelda indicating the small suitcase. "I brought them with me from Iraq when I returned stateside."

"Why did you torture Jeffrey Douglas?"

"I felt that just killing him would be too easy, I decided that he needed to suffer for what he did to Lisa," replied Zelda.

"How could you do that Zelda, after your experiences in Iraq?" Mac asked, clearly upset.

"I learned from the best, Mac," Zelda replied in a quiet voice. "Are you disappointed in me? Shocked?"

"Yes I am deeply shocked."

"So what happens now? Am I to be arrested? Charged with first degree murder?"

"I'm sorry Zelda, but yes you will," Mac answered. "I'll call Detective Flack to come and make the arrest, and then you will be transported to the jail ward at the hospital."

"I'm sorry Mac for putting you on the spot," Zelda whispered. "Mac, do me a favour please."

"If I can."

"Help me up please, so I can go to the bathroom."

"Sure," Mac gently lifted Zelda from the bed, sitting her into her wheelchair, and pushed the chair to the door of the bathroom.

"And Mac, after Detective Flack arrives, I want you to leave before he arrests me and I don't want you to visit me at the hospital, unless I give you permission."

"Zelda, you need your friends," Mac protesting.

"Promise me Mac, as a marine."

"I promise," Mac agreed reluctantly.

"Come here so I can hug you." Mac leaned down, so Zelda could reach him. "Good bye old friend. Thanks for all the memories and support," Zelda whispered, her eyes shiny with tears behind her sunglasses.

"This isn't good bye, let's make it see you later old friend," Mac returning the hug. "I'm going to call Flack now. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Alright Mac."

When Mac finally returned to Zelda's room, he found that Horatio had helped Zelda to return to her bed where she was resting.

"Detective Flack will be here shortly," Mac quietly informed Horatio and Zelda.

"Okay, I'm really tired, so I'm just going to lay here and close my eyes before all the hoopla starts," Zelda whispered.

"I can leave you and Mac alone," Horatio began.

"No, please stay," Zelda replied.

The two CSIs talked quietly as Zelda dozed. Time passed and Mac checked his watch frowning. "I think that I am going to go call Flack and find out what the delay is."

Horatio tilted his head listening, looking over at Zelda. "Mac, call Detective Flack and tell him that he can cancel his trip here."

Mac turned and looked at Zelda and realized that his friend had quietly slipped away. Mac chewed on his lower lip, fighting tears as he turned off the oxygen, removing the mask before pulling the sheet up over her face. "She is at peace now."

"I'm sorry for your loss Mac," Horatio standing up and placing his hand on Mac's shoulder in sympathy and compassion.

Both men looked up as they heard a soft knock on the door, before Flack opened the door – walking inside the room. "Sorry for taking so long Mac, you need me to make an arrest."

"I don't now, the suspect died five minutes ago. So would you please call the M.E.'s office for me please?"

"Of course Mac. Who was it?"

"Izelda Valdez."

"Your friend Zelda?"

Mac nodded. "I'm sorry Mac," Flack said, before leaving the room to make the necessary calls.

That evening Mac and Horatio were sitting in Sullivan's and Horatio asked. "How did you and Zelda meet?"

We were both marines stationed in Beirut, Zelda was out on a supply run when I was injured in a suicide attack. I ended up on the injured list and Zelda was then posted to Iraq."

"She something about not receiving Lisa's letters because of being a P.O.W.," said Horatio, thinking back to the previous year.

"Yeah, she was only in Iraq two months, when she was part of a small patrol, that was ambushed by insurgents. Three marines were killed and the rest including her were taken prisoner."

Horatio winched. "How long was Zelda a P.O.W.?"

"Six very long torturous months. Six long Months, I still don't know how she survived," Mac paused, lost in memory. "In her confession Zelda said that she had learned from the best. She was not kidding when she said that, she was beaten, raped, sodomized and tied out in the desert during the day."

"What injuries did she have?"

"Broken legs, hips, ribs, internal damage, numerous scars from being whipped, cut with a knife and she nearly went blind from the sun. You noticed the extremely dark sunglasses that she wore. Zelda had to have numerous surgeries, skin grafts, hip replacements, pins in her ankles and of course PTSD. Zelda had to have extensive therapy sessions to learn how to deal with the outside world again."

"She was tough."

"That she was," agreed Mac.

"How did the rest of her patrol do?"

"There were six of them taken prisoner, they only rescued Zelda and two other marines, the rest came home in body bags."

Horatio sat there stunned, before asking. "Do you have any idea when her funeral will be?"

"Zelda will be given a full marine ceremony in Arlington, Virginia as any good marine deserves. Zelda was never formally charged with murder, so there is no record of her disgrace."

"Will you be attending the funeral?"

"Yes, I don't know when it will be yet. I can let you know the details."

"Please, I hope to be able to attend."

"I'm glad that she went in her sleep, Zelda would have hated dying alone in the prison ward at the hospital."

"I'm sorry that I had to meet Zelda under these circumstances."

"I am too, she was a good marine and a good friend. I'm going to miss her."

The two veteran CSIs silently toasted Izelda Valdez's memory before leaving the bar. Outside the bar, Mac reached in his coat pocket saying. "I almost forgot to give you this envelope. I found it when I was packing up Zelda's belongings." And Mac gave Horatio an envelope with Lt. Horatio Caine written on the outside, along with the words, Private and Confidential.

Back in his hotel room, Horatio stared at the envelope for a long while before finally opening it, his curiosity getting the best of him. Unfolding the enclosed paper Horatio began reading.

_"Lt. Horatio Caine, now I know who you are, when I saw you two years ago on a hilltop in Rio de Janeiro I didn't know your name then, but I knew who you were fighting with. A nasty man by the name of Antonio Riaz, you're probably wondering how I could see you. My hotel window overlooked that helicopter landing pad and I was admiring the beautiful scenery with binoculars, when I saw two men fighting and then you came along and Antonio Riaz then tried to kill you. But you were able to defend yourself and your friend. And you are also probably wondering how I knew Antonio's name. I became friends with a lovely lady while visiting and I used to see him hanging around with her husband Raymond and Ray Jr., poor Yelina, she worried about her husband and son so much. I was happy, well not exactly happy, but pleased to see that her husband and son would be free from Antonio's influence. _

_I didn't let on, but I recognized you when I met you last year in Miami. The red hair is pretty distinctive – you have to admit. Meeting you gave me the courage to carry out my plans to avenge Lisa's death. I knew that you would try to hunt me down, but I also sensed that deep down that you would understand my reasons._

_So, Lt. Caine, if you are reading this letter, this means that the cancer has beaten me and I've gone on to a better place. I know that Mac considers you to be a good friend, so please look after him for me. I don't want him to grieve for me too much, I don't want him to slip back into his dark period like when his wife Claire died on 9/11. It took him so long for him to come out of that dark place._

_I do regret that I was not able to get to know you better. Also the next time you talk to Yelina, tell her thanks for her help, she'll know what I'm talking about. And that I hope that life will bring good things to her and Ray Jr._

_Well, I guess that is all I have to say except farewell, Lt. Horatio Caine._

_Respectfully yours, Izelda Susan Valdez."_

"Farewell, Izelda Susan Valdez, I do hope that you are finally at peace,"Horatio said quietly as he refolded the letter and slid it back into the envelope.

**The End**

**a/n - I just wanted to mention - I know nothing about the Marine Corp - all comes from my muse - my dad was in the Canadian Army as a dispatch rider. So I don't mean to offend any Marine officers.**


End file.
